First time buyers warned of gazumping risk

20-Sep-2007

First time buyers risk paying out a collective £290 million in preparing to buy a property that is then whisked away from them by another interested party, it has been claimed.

Personal finance website Fool.co.uk has said that its research shows that 12 per cent of homeowners say they have been gazumped in the last 12 months – and 12 per cent of this number had been gazumped at least three times.

Around a third of all respondents said they lost money as well as time as a result of such experiences, with almost three quarters saying they thought the practice should be made illegal.

"For many people, the purchase of a house will probably be the biggest single acquisition they will ever make," commented Fool.co.uk head of personal finance David Kuo.

"It can take months of searching to find the ideal home and anything that dashes the dream can be emotionally draining, especially if it is the result of being gazumped.

"It is sometimes said that gazumping is the price we pay for free market competition. But while competition can often draw out the best price for a product, it can also bring out the worst in people," Mr Kuo concluded.

First time buyers saw their share of the market fall by seven per cent in July, the Council of Mortgage Lenders revealed earlier this month.

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